The Swingate transmitting station is a facility for FM-transmission in the village of Swingate, near Dover, Kent (grid reference TR334429). For many years there were three lattice towers with a height of 111 metres (364 ft), which were built for Chain Home radar before World War II. The FM transmitting antennas are attached to what was the middle tower; microwave link dishes and mobile telephone antennas were spread across all three towers. The south tower was dismantled in March 2010.
 The three Swingate towers   | |
| Location | Swingate, Kent |
|---|---|
| Tower height | 111 metres (364 ft) |
| Coordinates | 51°08′16″N 1°20′09″E / 51.1378°N 1.3358°E |
| Grid reference | TR334429 |
| Demolished | 2010 (South tower) |
They are the only radar towers from the Battle of Britain in WWII still in use today, although the Swingate towers no longer have the three cantilever platforms that were fitted originally.
History
Originally there were four towers with wires stretched between them to transmit radio waves that were detected by a group of four smaller towers to the east of the surviving ones. The receiver towers were demolished after the war, along with one of the transmitter towers. Subsequently the north mast was demolished and replaced with a similar tower with a different bracing design. During the Cold War the towers sprouted four transmitters at their base which were popularly assumed to be part of the US ACE High communication system but were more likely an RAF link to Germany. The south tower was dismantled in March 2010.
Channels available from this site
Analogue radio
The transmitter is the main transmission station for the BBC which serves the bulk of Kent.[1]
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 90.0 MHz | 11 | BBC Radio 2 |
| 92.2 MHz | 11 | BBC Radio 3 |
| 94.4 MHz | 11 | BBC Radio 4 |
| 99.5 MHz | 11 | BBC Radio 1 |
| 104.2 MHz | 10 | BBC Kent |
Digital radio
There are currently no DAB signals from this site at present due to its proximity to mainland Europe. The county of Kent is therefore covered with smaller, low-powered relay stations instead to avoid interference.
See also
- Dover transmitting station - broadcasts TV, DAB and commercial FM radio from a site west of the town
References
- ^ Radio Listeners Guide 2010
External links
- Swingate transmitting station at mb21
- National Geographic photo showing the original configuration of four transmitters and four receiver towers]
51°8′16″N 1°20′9″E / 51.13778°N 1.33583°E{{#coordinates:}}: cannot have more than one primary tag per page
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